The Extraordinary JJ
by iknowuknow
Summary: He may not be the smartest in the world, but he has always been very resourceful. No characters are included because, in the words of young Nicholas, I like to be mysterious.


**A/N Not sure if this flows how I wanted it to, but here it is.**

This is the extraordinary story of JJ.

His life began in a rather mundane sort of a way. He was born in Stonetown General Hospital at 3:57 PM on a rainy Saturday in April, 1961.

His parents were overjoyed, and they quickly shared the news with the gathered relatives. Much of his father's household had gathered to witness his birth - his father had three sisters, and also a man he had essentially adopted as a brother. His mother, on the other hand, had only one much younger brother and an eccentric aunt who had raised them.

Loss was common in JJ's family. His father had been orphaned and adopted, and so had his mother and uncle. He grew up hearing wonderful stories of people who had passed, including another uncle he ought to have had who died in the war. His grandparents were by no means well-off, and they told stories of great sacrifices made for the sake of the family. As such, loss and sacrifice were no strangers to JJ, and he learned early on that life is about fighting with everything in you to protect the ones you love while you still have them around to love.

He first faced adversity at his home on the farm. JJ was no more than twelve month old at the time, and in fact had just left a party celebrating such an occasion, when he found himself alone with a stubborn calf called George. George had been birthed not long after JJ, but he had grown a great deal larger as time passed. He would grow into a bull with a rage unmatched in all of the surrounding area, and he would quickly be removed from the home JJ grew up in, but he was JJ's greatest friend in the meantime. No one knew what to make of this unlikely friendship, so obviously one-sided, but they allowed it purely because they knew JJ needed a friend he perceived to be near his own age, and all of the nearby children were at least five-and-one-half. The adversity JJ faced on this particular day with this particular calf had less to do with the calf himself, and more to do with the neighbor boys who thought it might prove entertaining to throw rocks at George. George being rather an aggressive calf, this caused a very immediate and dangerous reaction. Dangerous for JJ, that is, who had so easily slipped into the pen with the calf. He now faced the dire problem of escaping from the middle of a pen where a very aggressive calf raged in circles. Though not a ridiculously intelligent boy, JJ was nothing if not resourceful. Moving quickly, JJ watched the calf's rampage approach him, and quickly jumped into his dust trail and out the gate. The neighbor boys, having seen this feat of skill, quickly turned and ran for fear of getting in trouble. Little did they know, JJ did not yet have the capacity for speech further than "No!" and "Cow." JJ emerged with only minor scratches, and he swiftly made his way back to the party that had continued in his absence.

JJ found one particular problem to solve in his uncle's house. His uncle lived in a house in Stonetown. Though not incredibly far from his hometown and farm, Stonetown did involve a train ride. Thus, JJ spent many of the early vacations of his life there. By the time he had reached the age of five, he had grown tired of spending the evening alone in his room while the adults all talked and laughed. He had many toys, as his uncle was a very generous man who made a good deal of money doing work for the government. The toys had simply ceased to keep JJ entertained forever, however. He thought it might be wise to devise a plan, but planning had never been his strong suit. Instead, he simply looked out the window and judged the distance down. JJ discovered at a very young age that he had a talent for guessing distances, and he judged this fall to be about fifteen feet. He ran back into the room, grabbing his Slinky as he went, and tied his blankets, sheets, and slinky together. He attached the sheets securely to a bottom bedpost, then piled some books on the length of sheet immediately following the knot. JJ had learned very early on that books were in no short supply in this area - his uncle was the most avid reader he had ever and would ever meet in his lifetime. JJ wound the Slinky around his waist, then promptly vaulted out the window. The Slinky did its job of decreasing the tension on the blanket, and JJ found himself a safe distance of three-and-one-half feet above the ground. He unwound the Slinky, and quietly dropped to the ground. He went around the front of the house to proudly show off his accomplishment. Of course, his parents did not find his daring journey quite so worthy of award. He had escaped without a wound, though, so the punishment was not so severe as one might fear.

Shortly after his thirteenth birthday, JJ decided he was going to save the world some day. He didn't know how, but he had the drive and determination to do it. He had spent his formative years defending the little guy - those bullies never stood a chance - and he had come to the conclusion that it really was his calling. School had never been his strongest point, though he possessed a brilliant mind. Things had simply never made as much sense to him in the context of school, though, and he decided early on that it just wasn't for him. His parents, of course, were less than thrilled when he told them. Despite his many valid arguments - the town had only just built a high school a few years prior to his birth, so neither parent had attended high school - they simply refused to let him quit school. That all changed the summer he was seventeen.

The day had begun like any other. JJ had risen early to get his early morning chores done on the farm, then had ridden into town to pick up a few things at the store. A few minutes after he arrived, though, he had been called to the front of the store by a young officer with an urgent message. He rushed to the police station as quickly as he could, head filled with disbelief, but the news he had heard was entirely the truth. His parents had been in a fatal crash, and he was now the sole owner of the farm. His parents had left him in the care of his eldest aunt, and she lived far away in a place called New York. JJ refused to believe any of this could possibly be true. He rode home, packed up his things, and began to ride. He rode for quite some time, stopping occasionally to eat a snack he had packed, and eventually found himself in Stonetown. His uncle, having heard about what happened through trusted government contacts, immediately phoned his aunt to let her know he was safe. This is how JJ came to find himself in Stonetown.

His uncle, unlike his parents, was very supportive of his dreams. He did not want to see JJ get hurt, but he knew from experience that JJ had no trouble taking care of himself. He told JJ he would talk to his contacts as soon as JJ turned eighteen. For the next eight months, JJ studied at the library every day about secret agents. By the time he turned eighteen, he was ready.

JJ went on many fantastic missions in his tenure, but none meant more to him than the mission on which he met Victoria. She was a sweet young woman from Kansas, and they quickly fell in love. Unfortunately, as so many things went in JJ's life, Victoria died shortly after giving birth. JJ was devastated, but he knew that life must go on. Even though he had to take quite a bit of time off to care for his young child, JJ became one of the greatest agents the government had ever known. Then one day, they just stopped knowing him. It was the weirdest thing. One day he was on a mission; the next, it no longer mattered to anyone where he had gone. Anyone, of course, except his Uncle Nick.

Nick used every resource at his disposal to find his nephew, but he never could. He also had no idea what had happened to the man's child. The child had a different last name, for the safety of everyone involved, and he had never been told what that last name might be. In fact, he had never met the child and did not even know whether his nephew had a boy or a girl now missing out there. Feeling helpless with regards to his long-lost nephew and that nephew's child, Nick felt it his duty to throw himself whole-heartedly into the search for all of the missing agents. The government stopped listening to him, and he found he needed to take matters into his own hands.

Now, I'm sure you all know what happened next. Here's something you may not know, though. JJ and Nick did have their reunion. For Nick was none other than the famous Nicholas Benedict, and JJ - also known as John Cole Hopefield Junior - was none other than Milligan himself. His uncle, having not seen him since he was just a teen, had not recognized him as a man. He simply needed a nasty trip to a mud pit for he and his uncle to realize who he truly was, and to be incredibly happy about it. And the rest, as they say, is history.


End file.
